


RFA Cafe

by kokirikid



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - No RFA (Mystic Messenger), Cafe AU, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-07
Updated: 2019-01-12
Packaged: 2019-10-05 21:29:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,788
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17332706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kokirikid/pseuds/kokirikid
Summary: MC gets a call that she has been called in to interview at the prestigious RFA Cafe but sleeps in and almost misses her interview. In order to prove she is right for the job, she must survive a 10-day probationary period being trained by none other than the members of the RFA. Will MC be able to survive the probation and earn the job for good? Are there other parties threatening to take down the RFA? Join the fun and crazy adventures of MC's journey as  a barista and find out in RFA Cafe!*Mystic Messenger AU where the characters of MM are all employees at a cafe called RFA Cafe. There may be story/route spoilers for several characters- read at your own discretion.*





	1. The Interview

**Author's Note:**

> MC will be the placeholder name for the Main Character of Mystic Messenger. Please feel free to imagine MC however you wish while reading! 
> 
> I may add relationships or romance at some point but romance will not be the focus, it will be more of a fun, slice of life type AU. I hope you enjoy reading this alternate take on the Mystic Messenger characters!
> 
> Again, thank you for reading RFA Cafe, I hope you enjoy it!

Fiddling on her phone as usual, MC did not have much to do during the day since graduating from college. She spent most of her time playing otome games, waiting for someone, anyone, to call her back about her job applications. She had just about applied to every job in Korea in the hopes that someone would hire her.

"What's the point?" She begged the 2D boys on the other side of her phone screen, "Why did I even bother going to college if I can't get a job at all?"

She sighed and set her phone down, the background music of her game softly fading as she walked towards the restroom. She had just about sat down when she heard the sound on her phone transition to that of her ringtone as it grew louder.

"Hold on!" She shouted, knowing the caller could not hear. She stood up from the toilet seat she had barely sat on and lept forward, tripping over her pants, which were still around her ankles. 

"Wait!" She shouted again, dragging her bruised self from off the floor. She tripped over her pants again, flung them off in anger with a swift kick, and dashed to the living room. She picked up her phone and, just as she was about to swipe to answer it, the call timed out.

"No!" MC yelled, imagining the possibility of a job slipping away from her as she pressed "call back." She put the phone to her ear only to hear a busy tone in response and threw her phone onto the couch in anger. She watched helplessly as her phone bounced from the couch to the floor and a fresh crack spidered across her screen. 

"Damn it..." she muttered, defeated, and fell to the floor. She felt a tinge of pain in her knees from when she had fallen earlier and knew they would soon bruise. 

She saw her screen light up out of the corner of her eye and crawled across the floor to her phone to see she had received a voicemail message. With a glint of hope in her eyes, she pressed the notification and the message played.

"Good afternoon, miss," A polite voice greeted, "If you were still interested in a position at our cafe, please call us back at this number to schedule an in-person interview. We hope to hear from you soon." 

MC's eye lit up as she heard the message and she squealed in delight. She pressed the "call back" button once more and, this time, was greeted by a voice on the other line.

"RFA Cafe, this is the assistant manager, Jaehee, speaking. How may I assist you?" A woman's voice asked, the same voice that had left the message.

MC grinned in excitement, "THE RFA Cafe!" She thought, excited by the idea of working at such a prestigious shop. MC had never been able to go to the shop herself as the prices were a bit steep, but it was due to a majority of the proceeds from the purchases being donated to charity. "Maybe I'll get to try their coffee!" She thought, before opening her mouth to respond.

"Hello!" MC replied cheerfully to the woman on the phone, "My name is MC, I just received a call about scheduling an interview..."

"Ah yes," The voice on the other line said with what seemed like a tone of relief, "Thank you for calling us back. When would be the earliest you could come in for an interview?"

"Would I be able to come in today?" MC asked eagerly.

"Hmm, our manager will not be in the cafe until tomorrow morning and wished to be present for all interviews..." she paused, "Is that all right?"

"Yes, that would be perfectly fine!" MC replied. 

"Great, we will see you tomorrow at 9am at the cafe then, have a wonderful rest of your day!" The woman on the other line hung up without waiting for a reply, though MC was too preoccupied with her own excitement to notice. 

MC set an alarm for her interview and put her phone down, still smiling. She laid on the rug and mused over what she would wear to her interview, eventually dozing off right there on the floor, her pants still lying in a clump in the restroom where she had left them.

 

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

MC awoke the next morning, her limbs stiff from having slept on the floor. She reached over for her phone to check the time but her screen did not respond.

"No!" She exclaimed, realizing she had fallen asleep without having plugged her phone into the charger, "What time is it?" She thought, darting up from the ground, her stiff limbs making her movements clumsy and awkward. She scrambled to the kitchen and looked at the microwave, which told her that the time was 8:30.

"Are you kidding!?" She yelled, hitting herself in the forehead. 

The cafe where she would be interviewing was a 20 minute walk from her apartment and she still needed to shower. She hurriedly threw her phone on the charger and rushed to the restroom. She turned on the shower and threw off her shirt, jumping into the cool water before it had the chance to warm up. She looked down to see that she was still wearing her socks, which she peeled off and threw outside of the shower, hearing a wet "splat" as one of them hit the wall. 

MC quickly showered and tied her wet hair into a bun. 7 minutes had passed and she needed to be out of the door in 3. She threw on the first dress she could find, grabbed her phone and purse, and ran to the door. She slipped on the pair of shoes next to the door before opening it. 

The cold air outside rushed at her, stinging her cheeks. She did not have enough time to go back in and grab a jacket, so she locked the door and started for the cafe. Her rushed steps and wet hair made her shiver and her breathing grew heavier the more she walked. 

It was not until she was about to turn the corner onto the street where the Cafe was located that she looked down and realized she was wearing her house slippers. She stopped in her tracks and sighed, knowing her chances of getting this job were becoming more and more slim. Though time was running out, MC's emotions began t overwhelm her and she stopped in her tracks as warm tears began to stream down her face. Because she was in public, her cheeks burned hot from embarrassment but that only made more tears pour from her eyes. 

Feeling hopeless, she began to turn back when she heard a kind voice call out, "Are you all right, miss?"  
MC looked towards the source of the voice to see a petite woman with short hair and glasses peering at her with a look of concern. 

"Oh," MC started, wiping her face, "I'm okay...." She shivered as she spoke.

"Oh no, you must be freezing!" The young woman exclaimed, removing her own jacket. She rushed towards MC and placed the jacket over her shoulders, "You'll catch a cold walking around like that," Noting MC's wet hair. 

"I was in a rush..." MC said quietly, her shivers decreasing as she pulled the jacket around herself more tightly.

"Oh dear..." The young woman said, "Well, let's get you someplace warm. I'm sure whomever you're meeting will understand if you are a little late."

MC nodded and stared at her feet, allowing the young woman to guide her to a nearby building. MC, trying to hide her tears from curious eyes, kept her eyes towards the ground as she walked so that her bangs would cover her face.

"One moment," The young woman stated, pulling a large keyring from her pocket. The keys jangled softly as she searched for the correct one, inserting it into the lock with a "click." She opened the door and ushered MC inside with one arm while turning on the light switch with the other.

"Please take a seat, I will be right back," The young woman said, disappearing behind a counter. 

MC looked at her surroundings and found that she was in what appeared to be a small cafe. She took a seat at a table in the corner and waited for the young woman to return. She heard a bell and turned to see that a man had walked into the shop. He was dressed in a suit and had dark black hair that was parted to one side. He wore an expression of indifference and annoyance and scanned the area behind the counter.

The young woman reappeared, holding a white mug with steam swirling around the surface. "Ah, Mr. Han," She said, "Good morning, sir." The young woman spoke very formally to the man, though he appeared to be only a few years older than her.

The man stared at the mug in her hands, "Were you planning on sampling the product before I arrived?" He said dryly. 

"Oh, no sir, this is for the young woman in the corner," She said, walking towards MC and placing the mug in front of her, "Please drink this to warm yourself up," she smiled sweetly. She noticed MC began searching her pockets and stopped her, whispering, "Don't worry about it."

The man scoffed, "I hope you do not intend on giving handouts today. This is a business, after all."

"No, sir. I will be paying for the drink."

The man gave a look of annoyance before changing the subject, "Where is this interviewee you mentioned, Miss Kang?" He asked, looking around, "It is already past 9 and I do not have time to wait around. I am very busy."

MC heard this and looked down at her mug to see that it was emblazoned with a logo that read "RFA."

"I'm sorry, sir-" the woman started.

"Ah," MC exclaimed, "I believe that is me."

"Miss MC?" The young woman asked, holding out her hand, "My apologies for not introducing myself sooner. My name is Jaehee Kang, I am the assistant manager here at RFA Cafe." MC took her hand and shook it firmly. Jaehee continued, "And the man over there is Mr. Jumin Han, the co-owner and manager of RFA Cafe." 

MC stood up and stumbled due to dizziness. She reached her hand out to shake Jumin's but felt a sneeze and instinctively covered her mouth with her hand. Jumin stared at her hand with a look of disgust and put his hands into his pockets. MC opened her mouth to greet him but stumbled again. She looked up at Jumin to see that he was suspiciously eyeing her house slippers and unkempt appearance.

"Thank you for coming in today, miss, however I feel that you would not be a good fit for this position." Jumin said.

"Wait," Jaehee started, "You aren't even going to interview her?" 

Jumin opened his mouth to reply when he and Jaehee heard a thump behind them and turned to see that MC was lying on the floor unconscious.

"Oh no," Jaehee said, rushing to the girl, "She must be sick."

Jumin sighed, "I will call my driver. Please escort the young lady home," he said as he punched some numbers into his phone. He lifted the phone to his ear and walked towards the unconscious MC. He crouched down and reached for her purse, rifling through it.

"Sir-" Jaehee started, but stopped as she saw that he had pulled out her wallet and was reading her ID card, relaying the address listed to his driver on the phone. Jumin tapped his screen and slipped the phone back into his pocket.

"Miss Kang, please let me review the applicants next time or I will find another assistant manager."

"Sir, please, give her another chance," Jaehee pleaded, "She is ill and still trekked through the freezing cold for this interview. She seems very determined and headstrong... That alone shows me she would be a good candidate for the position."

"Very well," Jumin sighed, "Have her return on Monday. We will have her shadow with Luciel for a day to see how she fares. If she passes the test, we will put her on an 10-day trial to determine if she is fit to become an official employee," He spoke, very straightforward, "Please schedule an evaluation for the 11th day," He paused, hearing a honk from outside, "Driver Kim is out front. Take Miss MC home and return to work. I expect you back here by 10:30."

Jaehee sighed with both relief and annoyance, "Yes, Mr. Han."


	2. The Fever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After coming down with a fever during her interview, MC ventures out to pick up medication and runs into a sticky situation when she is confronted by an unknown boy at the convenience store.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has read my first chapter of this story! I hope to update regularly. I am a full time graduate student so I will try my hardest to get updates out when I am not working on school work. 
> 
> Thank you again to all of you who have read my first chapter (and the lovely person who bookmarked it!) and I hope you enjoy this one as well. 
> 
> Things are starting to pick up for MC and I can't wait to show you all the antics she gets into as she starts meeting the other members of the RFA on her first day at the Cafe! 
> 
> Hope you all have a wonderful day and thank you for reading!

MC awoke to see a concerned-looking Jaehee peering at her from above. MC rubbed her eyes and looked around to see that she had been returned to own home and was lying on the couch. Her entire body felt warm and she reached up to touch her heard to find that there was a cool cloth draped across it. 

"Jaehee..." She said sleepily, attempting to sit up. Jaehee stopped her.

"You seem to have a fever, it would be best if you laid down a bit longer." Jaehee smiled. "I have to return to the cafe so please spend the rest of the day sleeping. I will see you bright and early on Monday at the Cafe." 

"Thank you, Miss Kang."

"No need for the formality, you may call me Jaehee." She smiled again and walked to the door, "Feel better!" She added and exited the apartment.

MC looked down at her feet to see that she was still wearing her shoes. MC kicked them off and turned onto her side. She yawned once and closed her eyes. Within minutes, she had fallen back asleep. She awoke a few hours later and looked at her phone, which had a notification on the screen informing her of 5% battery life remaining. She dismissed the notification and checked the time. It was a little past 5 pm. 

MC set her phone down on the coffee table and slowly sat up. Her head throbbed as she changed positions and she shut her eyes tightly from the pain. She sat like that for a moment before attempting to stand. With weak and wobbly legs, she made her way to the kitchen and opened one of the cabinets, searching for medication. She found a bottle of headache medicine and opened it to find that there was only half of a dose left. 

"That's not really going to help." She thought, eyeing the single pill in her hand.

She sighed and emptied the bottle into her hand. She made her way to the kitchen sink. She leaned over the basin and turned on the faucet. MC drank directly from the sink, keeping some water in her mouth. She inserted the pill without spilling and swallowed the pill with the water in her mouth, which had now grown a bit warm. She raised her head back up but the motion had agitated her headache and she squinted in pain again.

"I really need to get more," She thought, looking at the empty bottle in her other hand, "This won't do anything."

MC made her way back towards the couch, where she had left her shoes. She sat down on the couch and clenched her jaw in pain as she reached down for her shoes. Her head was pounding as she slipped her feet into her shoes. Bracing for a surge of pain, she sat up slowly and picked up her phone, which was almost dead. She put it in her pocket and picked up her keys. She was about to walk out the door before realizing she was not wearing a coat, the same reason she was currently feeling so ill. She picked up a jacket from her room, put it on, and left her apartment.

She walked a few minutes until she arrived at the convenience store near her apartment. As she was about to enter the store, she heard arguing coming from the alley. Curiosity got the best of her as she peeked around the corner to see a boy with bleached hair speaking loudly into his phone.

"I said I heard you!" He shouted, pacing angrily, "I'll get it, jeez." He hung up the phone and shoved the phone into his pocket with a huff. 

MC noticed he seemed agitated and pulled back from peeking. However, her sickness betrayed her and she sneezed involuntarily. She covered her mouth and pressed her back against the wall, hoping he would not see her.

"Come out, now," She heard him say with an annoyed tone, "I know you're there." 

MC could hear the the crunching of his boots on the gravel as he stepped closer. She tried to move to sneak away, but felt a hot breath on the back of her neck and realized she could not escape.

"Ah," She started, "I'm sorry, I heard yelling and wanted to make sure everything was okay." She stared at the ground.

"You're pretty nosy, aren't you?" He stepped around the corner so that he was facing her, "Look at me."

MC looked up and looked at the boy's face. His mint-green eyes stared back at her but they seemed empty and cold. He had bags under his eyes that made him look either tired or sick.

"I've seen you," He said, eyeing her suspiciously. He leaned forward, his leather jacket squeaking with the movement, "I saw you being carried out of that RFA Cafe earlier. What was that about?"

"He saw me?" She thought, "I think I would have remembered someone like him."

"Hello?" He said, snapping in front of her face, "Nothing to say?"

"Oh, I was feeling a bit sick..." MC replied quietly.

He looked her up and down and scoffed, "Obviously."

MC looked down and chewed on the inside of her cheek. She desperately wanted to get out of this situation but her legs would not move.

"What were you doing there?" The boy inquired.

"I uh..." She hesitated.

"I knew it. You were there about the job posting, right?"

"Ah..." She hesitated again, looking around nervously.

His eyes brightened, "Give me your phone." He demanded, trying to grab it from her hand. He was able to take the phone from her but it would not turn on.

"Pft," He scoffed, "Is this thing just for show?" He turned her phone around and tried again to turn it on but it would not.

The bleached-haired boy threw the phone back into her hands. MC held her phone tightly in her hand, glancing around to see if there was anyone around to help her. She saw a blonde boy in the distance and feigned a coughing fit to get his attention. The boy in front of her looked around nervously, saw that the blonde boy in the distance was looking, and muttered "Damn it" to himself before disappearing back into the alley.

The blonde boy made his way over and asked, "Are you alright?"

"Yes..." MC replied, a bit shaken, "Thank you. Though..." She hesitated, looking around to see that the sun had completely set and it had become dark out, "I'm a bit afraid to walk home alone now."

"I can take you home, miss." The boy said, a contagiously cheerful smile plastered across his face.

"Thank you..." MC looked towards the entrance to the convenience store, "Can you give me one moment? I just need to buy some medicine first."

"No problem!" The boy said, "I'll wait right here."

"Thank you!" MC rushed into the store and within minutes, had returned, holding a plastic bag.

"Are you ready?" The boy asked.

MC nodded in response.

"Great!" He said, holding out a hand, "I'm Yoosung, by the way! Yoosung Kim!"

MC took his hand and shook it, "Nice to meet you, you can call me MC."

"Nice to meet you too, MC!" Yoosung replied, still smiling.

The two began walking in the direction of MC's apartment. MC began to question allowing a stranger to take her home, but attempted to shake off the uneasy feeling by getting to know Yoosung.

"So, Yoosung," MC started, "Are you a student?" She asked, noting that he seemed a bit younger than herself.

"Yep!" Yoosung said cheerfully, "I'm working on my studies right now but I hate going to class."  
MC laughed, "I can understand that, I'm glad to be done with it."

"You already graduated?"

"Yeah, a few months ago. I haven't really been able to find a job yet. What major are you studying?" MC asked.

"I'm glad I already have a job, at least!" He said, ignoring the question about his major, "But now I'm worried that there isn't a point if a graduate can't find one!"  
"Well... I kind of got a job but it's just a trial run for now." MC said, " I won't know if I have the job until after."

"Wow, that sounds stressful!"

"Yeah," MC said, seeing her apartment in the distance, "We're almost there, thank you again for walking with me but I can go the rest of the way myself."

"Oh, okay!" Yoosung said, "I hope you feel better!" He grinned and waved excitedly as MC walked away. MC turned around as she was about to approach her building and saw Yoosung was still waving.

"What a happy-go-lucky guy." She thought. She smiled and waved back at him before going up to her building.

MC reached into her pocket for her keys but her pocket was empty.

"Huh?" She thought, "I know I brought them because I locked up when I left." She sighed, "Maybe it fell out of my pocket at the convenience store? I'll call them and the police station tomorrow to see if anyone turned them in."

MC looked around to make sure nobody was watching and dug out the spare key that she kept hidden in the plant on her porch. She entered her apartment and locked the door behind her. Her exhaustion was beginning to catch up to her and she yawned. She inspected her apartment, nervous about her missing key, but did not find any intruders. She pushed a chair in front of the door for good measure.

Yawning again, she took a dose of medication, changed into her pajamas, and laid down in her bed. She smiled, thinking of the new opportunity she was given and hopeful of her upcoming days at RFA Cafe. She let her concerns over her missing key slip out of her mind as she drifted off to sleep.


End file.
